| (A) Residential. A price to beat rate shall be calculated
for each rate and service rider under which a residential customer
was taking service on January 1, 1999, except as approved by the commission
pursuant to subparagraph (C) of this paragraph. A price to beat rate
shall not be calculated for any new service or tariff option granted
to an affiliated electric utility pursuant to PURA §39.054, or
any other rate or tariff option not in effect on January 1, 1999.
(i) Beginning with the first full billing cycle of
the price to beat period, residential customers served by the affiliated
REP shall be placed on the price to beat rate derived from the rate
under which they were taking service on December 31, 2001.
(ii) Beginning with the first full billing cycle of
the price to beat period, residential customers served by the affiliated
REP who were taking service under a rate for which a price to beat
rate was not developed, shall be placed on the price to beat rate
derived from any eligible residential rate that was or would have
been available to the customer on January 1, 1999.
(iii) New residential customers after December 31,
2001, may choose any price to beat rate for which they meet the eligibility
requirements as detailed in the applicable price to beat tariff.
(iv) Residential customers who return to the affiliated
REP after being served by a non-affiliated REP may choose any price
to beat for which they meet the eligibility requirements as detailed
in the applicable price to beat tariff(s).
(v) Notwithstanding clauses (i)-(iv) of this subparagraph,
residential customers may request service under any price to beat
rate for which they are eligible. Selection of the most advantageous
rate shall be the sole responsibility of the residential customer.
(B) Small commercial. A price to beat rate shall be
calculated for each rate and service rider under which a small commercial
customer was taking service on January 1, 1999, except as approved
by the commission pursuant to subparagraph (C) of this paragraph.
A price to beat rate shall not be calculated for any new service or
tariff option granted to an affiliated electric utility pursuant to
PURA §39.054, or for any rate of tariff option not in effect
on January 1, 1999.
(i) Beginning with the first full billing cycle of
the price to beat period, small commercial customers served by the
affiliated REP shall be placed on the price to beat rate derived from
the rate under which they were taking service on December 31, 2001.
(ii) Beginning with the first full billing cycle of
the price to beat period, small commercial customers served by the
affiliated REP beginning in January of 2002, who were taking service
under a rate for which a price to beat rate was not developed, shall
be placed on a price to beat rate derived from an eligible rate that
was or would have been available to the customer on January 1, 1999.
(iii) New small commercial customers after December
31, 2001, may choose any price to beat rate for which they meet the
eligibility requirements as detailed in the applicable price to beat
tariff.
(iv) Small commercial customers who return to the affiliated
REP after being served by a non-affiliated REP may choose any price
to beat rate for which they meet the eligibility requirements as detailed
in the price to beat tariff(s).
(v) Notwithstanding clauses (i)-(iv) of this subparagraph,
small commercial customers may request service under any price to
beat tariff for which they are eligible. Selection of the most advantageous
rate shall be the sole responsibility of the small commercial customer.
(C) An electric utility, on behalf of its future affiliated
REP, shall file within 60 days of the effective date of this section,
price to beat tariffs and supporting workpapers for the price to beat
rates developed in accordance with subparagraphs (A) and (B) of this
paragraph. At the time of this filing, the affiliated REP may request
that a price to beat rate not be developed from a particular rate
of service rider along with justification for the request. The electric
utility shall provide notice to all customers currently taking service
under such rates or service riders of the utility's request.
(2) Base rate component of price to beat. For the eligible
rates identified in paragraph (1) of this subsection, the affiliated
REP shall reduce each base rate component including any purchased
power cost recovery factor (PCRF), in effect for the affiliated electric
utility on January 1, 1999, by 6.0% in order to determine the base
rate component of the price to beat, with the following exceptions:
(A) If base rates for the affiliated electric utility
were reduced by more than 12% as the result of a final order issued
by the commission after October 1, 1998, then the price to beat shall
be the rate in effect as a result of a settlement approved by the
commission after January 1, 1999.
(B) For affiliated REPs operating in a region defined
by PURA §39.401, the commission may reduce rates by less than
6.0% if the commission determines a lesser reduction is necessary
and consistent with the capital requirements needed to develop the
infrastructure necessary to facilitate competition among electric
generators.
(C) Except as provided in subparagraphs (A) and (B)
of this paragraph, for any affiliated electric utility that has stipulated
to rate reductions in a proceeding for which a final order had not
been issued by January 1, 1999, such rate reductions shall be deducted
from the base rates in effect on January 1, 1999, in addition to the
6.0% reduction. Such rate credits shall also be applied to the rates
of the transmission and distribution utility.
(3) Fuel factor component of price to beat.
(A) Each affiliated electric utility shall file an
application to establish one or more fuel factors, to be effective
on January 1, 2002, according to the following schedule:
(i) April 1, 2001 - Reliant Houston Lighting &
Power;
(ii) May 1, 2001 - TXU Electric Company;
(iii) June 1, 2001 - Texas-New Mexico Power Company
and Central Power & Light Company;
(iv) July 1, 2001 - Entergy Gulf States, Inc. and West
Texas Utilities;
(v) August 1, 2001 - Southwestern Electric Power Company
and Southwestern Public Service Company.
(B) The rate year for the filing shall be calendar
year 2002. The affiliated electric utility shall follow the requirements
of §25.237(a)(1), (b), (c) and (e) of this title (relating to
Fuel Factors) and the Fuel Factor Filing Package of November 23, 1993,
for the filing of its fuel factor(s). To the extent that the commission
has issued an order for a utility that includes provisions relating
to the price to beat fuel factor, the price to beat fuel factor shall
be set consistent with such an order.
(C) Subject to the limitations in clause (i) and (ii)
of this subparagraph, affiliated electric utilities may utilize seasonal
fuel factors to reflect the expected differences in the cost of the
market price of electricity throughout the year.
(i) Affiliated electric utilities with seasonal fuel
factors in effect on or before March 1, 2001, may request seasonal
fuel factors for their residential and small commercial price to beat
customers provided the level of seasonality is identical to that reflected
in its commission-approved fuel factors on March 1, 2001.
(ii) Affiliated electric utilities without seasonal
fuel factors in effect on or before March 1, 2001, may request seasonal
fuel factors to be applicable to small commercial price to beat customers
only. Any request for seasonal fuel factors under this clause must
demonstrate that the average small commercial customer will receive,
on an annual basis, a 6.0% reduction from the average bundled rate
in effect on January 1, 1999, adjusted for the final fuel factor determined
under subparagraph (D) of this paragraph; provided, however, that
a utility subject to the exception in paragraph (2)(A) of this subsection
must demonstrate that the average small commercial customer will receive,
on an annual basis, the average bundled rate in effect as the result
of a settlement approved by the commission after January 1, 1999,
adjusted for the final fuel factor determined under subparagraph (D)
of this paragraph.
(D) Each affiliated electric utility shall file additional
information on October 1, 2001, to reflect changes in the price of
natural gas for the rate year of 2002. The affiliated electric utility
shall also file information necessary to determine the initial headroom
that exists under the price to beat as a result of the setting of
the initial price to beat fuel factor pursuant to this subparagraph.
The adjustment shall be calculated using the following methodology:
(i) For the ten-day period ending on September 15,
2001, an average price shall be calculated for each month of 2002
in the closing forward NYMEX Henry Hub natural gas prices, as reported
in the Wall Street Journal.
Cont'd... |
